ABSTRACT
In order to study the enhancement of immune functions and autologous tumor-killing (ATX) activity by kappa-selenocarrageenan (KSC) in mice bearing sarcoma 180, the effects of KSC and/or Cyclophosphamide (Cy) on natural killer(NK) activity, lymphokine activated killer(LAK) activity, the production of interleukin-2 (IL-2), ATK activity and the growth of sarcoma 180 (S180) were observed. The results showed that KSC promoted NK activity, LAK activity and ATK activity in vivo, increased IL-2 production at 40mg/kg ?d x 9d. It also enhanced the antitumor action of Cy (20mg/kg?d x 9d) and offsetted the inhibition of Cy on immunocompetent cells. The ATK activity in splenocytes of SI80-bearing mice could be induced and augmented by recombinant interleukin-2 (rIL-2) in vitro. In conclution, KSC had a up-regulating effect on immune functions and ATK activity in tumor-bearing mice, therefore, can be used as a biological response modifier (BRM) in cancer biotherapy.